Evaluating Research Performance in Economics and Social Sciences
3rd May 2007 , Royal Irish Academy, Dawson St, Dublin 2
The meeting is organised in association with the IUA, IRCHSS & Academy of Social Sciences.
To reserve your free place in advance please email: evaluation@ria.ie
or tel: (00 353 1) 6762570 ext 236
- HOW CAN WE KNOW THAT WE ARE GETTING QUALITY AND VALUE FOR MONEY FROM SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC RESEARCH?
- HOW DO THEY ANSWER THIS QUESTION IN OTHER COUNTRIES?
- WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR SCHOLARSHIP?
- WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR FUNDERS & THE USER COMMUNITY?
The evaluation of the quality, performance and contribution of research in the context of the reform of the third-level sector is an issue of ongoing concern in Ireland as well as internationally. Practice varies across countries. In the UK for example, assessment of research has been formalised into a national Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) which, now in its eighth iteration, has occasioned huge change in academic standards and practice.
Over the next seven years Ireland will see an unprecedented investment in research across all disciplines as part of the Strategy for Science Technology and Innovation 2006-2013 (SSTI). The Government wants to ensure that the actions towards achievement of the goals mapped out in the SSTI are being realized and that such actions are resulting in the anticipated outcomes. As a consequence a comprehensive and consistent set of indicators is being developed to track the application of the SSTI and its outcomes over time. The principle involved is akin to that underpinning the National Development Plan - to provide value for taxpayers’ money through robust and transparent appraisal, management and monitoring systems for investment. The fact of the matter is that improved research funding comes with a price: measurement and evaluation of activity and contribution.
There is a danger that a “one size fits all” approach may be adopted and inappropriate measures be used for Economics and Social Sciences. It is therefore critically important that funders, academics and researchers, and the user-community become actively involved in developing indicators and metrics in these disciplines. The aim of the conference is to give a broad critical overview of developments in a national and European context. It will be of interest to a wide range of professionals including academics, university administrators, policy makers, funders and the user community.
With contributions on experience in Ireland and the UK as well as an overview of European practice, the planned seminar is an opportunity for discussion and exchange of knowledge not just about different systems of evaluating research but also about their implications in terms of the nature and purpose of research in the social sciences, the quality of scholarship and the relationships between academia, the user community and the wider society.
Programme
- 1.30p.m. Welcome – President of RIA
- 1.40p.m. - 2.10p.m Professor John Morison, QUB
“A Critical Analysis of the UK Research Assessment Exercise (RAE)”
- 2.10p.m. – 2.40p.m. Professor Brigid Laffan, UCD
“Evaluation Perspectives: Reflection on Current Practice within Irish Universities”
- 2.40p.m - 3.00p.m Questions and Answers session
Chair, Professor John Gardner, QUB
- 3.00p.m. – 3.20p.m. Tea/Coffee
- 3.20p.m – 3.50p.m. Dr Jack Spaapen, Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences
“The Dutch National System of Evaluation: Judging Research on its Merits ”
- 3.50p.m – 4.20p.m. Dr Conor O’Carroll, IUA
“Ensuring Appropriate Performance Metrics in Social Sciences”
- 4.20 p.m – 5.10 p.m. Panel Discussion: Where from here?
Chair: Professor Mary Daly, QUB
